1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a hard disk drive housing apparatus and an electronic apparatus, and particularly to a hard disk drive (HDD) housing apparatus and an electronic apparatus in which heat generated from a hard disk drive housing apparatus and an electronic apparatus can be radiated, a noise and a vibration from the hard disk drive housing apparatus and the electronic apparatus can be absorbed and in which a package body in which the hard disk drive housing apparatus is wrapped with a vibration absorption material for insulating a noise can be easily inserted into a noise insulation box.
2. Description of the Related Art
A known case main body for accommodating therein a drive unit rotating at high speed within a hard disk drive (HDD) has had airtight property in order to prevent a noise generated when the drive unit is rotated and vibrated. From a heat radiation standpoint, such airtight case main body encounters with problems in which the above airtight case main body has no convection of air, it accumulates heat and it cannot maintain sufficient heat radiation effect. To solve the above-mentioned problems, cited patent reference 1 has disclosed a HDD housing structure in which two problems of heat radiation and absorption of vibration can be solved effectively while airtight property can be maintained.
FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings is a schematic perspective view showing a HDD housing structure disclosed in the cited patent reference 1.
As shown in FIG. 1, the above-described cited patent reference 1 discloses a housing structure for housing a HDD 7 in which a hard disk drive unit and the like are housed within a flat case 1 of which outward appearance is substantially a rectangular solid and in which noise absorption members 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d are provided within the case 1. As shown in FIG. 1, the case 1 is composed of a case lid 2 and a box-like case main body 3 with the case 2 mounted to an open bottom portion thereof. Noise absorption members 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d, each of which has a predetermined thickness, are disposed along the inner wall portion around the case main body 3. A heat radiation plate 5 is located on the inside of the top portion 3a of the case main body 3 and a drive unit is located between supporting members 6L and 6R erected from the heat radiation plate 5 to the inside of the case main body 3. In order to enable the heat radiation plate 5, the supporting members 6L, 6R and the case lid 2 to form a heat radiation structure which contacts with the drive unit to radiate heat from the drive unit, the case lid 2, the case main body 3, the heat radiation plate 5 and the supporting members 6L, 6R are made of aluminum or aluminum alloy.
According to this arrangement, the noise absorption members 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d can absorb a vibration noise and they can also decrease leakage of a noise to the outside. In addition, the case lid 2, the case main body 3, the heat radiation plate 5 and the supporting members 6L, 6R are made of material having excellent heat conduction property and hence heat radiation effect of the drive unit can be exhibited.
As shown in FIG. 1, the noise absorption members 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d are made of a sponge-like soft synthetic resin or a natural rubber and a part of the noise absorption members 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d can kept its position in the state in which it is held between the inner wall surface of the case main body 3 and the supporting members 6L, 6R. Also, the heat radiation plate 5 is attached to the inner surface of the case lid 2 through a member high heat transmission property and cushion property, for example, a square plate member 8 made of an adhesive synthetic resin commercially available under trade name of “SORBOTHANE” and this heat radiation plate 5 is brought in contact with the drive unit of the HDD 7. A second heat radiation plate 5a is provided between the case lid 2 and the heat radiation plate 5 and it is brought in contact with the case lid 2 through the second square member 8a and the noise absorption member 4d. Accordingly, heat is transmitted from the heat radiation plate 5a to the case lid 2 by the second square plate member 8a with the high heat transmission property and the cushion property.
Further, a cited patent reference 2 has disclosed a structure to completely house a hard disk (HD) into a box made of a noise absorption material as an attachment structure in which a noise generated from the HDD 7 can be decreased and in which heat radiation efficiency can be improved.
FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the HDD 7 disclosed as an example of the related art in the cited patent reference 2. According to this noise dumping structure, as shown in FIG. 2, a base 10 and a cover 11 are attached so as to sandwich the HDD 7. The HDD 7 is fixed to the base 10 by screws 12a and a vibration isolation member 13 is disposed between the base 10 and the HDD 7. The cover 11 is fixed to the base 10 by the screws 12a across the HDD 7 in an opposing relation to the base 10. The cover 11 is provided with a cooling fan (exclusive fan) 14 fixed thereto by screws 12c. A noise absorption member 4 attached to the cover 11 is provided between the cover 11 and the HDD 7. In this manner, the HDD 7 is accommodated into the noise insulation box composed of the base 10 and the cover 11.
More specifically, according to the arrangement shown in FIG. 2, the exclusive cooling fan 14 attached to the HDD 7 forces the inside of the noise insulation box to be air-cooled in a forcedly air-cooled fashion to efficiently radiate heat generated from the HDD and hence function of the hard disk can be maintained highly reliable.
According to the arrangement of the HDD 7 described in the above-mentioned cited patent reference 1, since the noise absorption members 4a to 4d and the two heat radiation plates 3, 3a are incorporated within the case main body 3 and the case lid 2 comprising the case 1, the case 1 of the HDD 7 becomes large in size. In addition, since the noise absorption members 4a, 4b, 4c and 4d are attached to the inside of the case main body 3, the assembly process becomes complex and the assembly requires a large number of assembly processes.
Also, according to the arrangement of the HDD 7 described in the above-mentioned cited patent reference 2, from a noise insulation standpoint, the HDD 7 needs the exclusive cooling fan 14 and a noise is unavoidably generated from this exclusive cooling fan 14.
The cited patent reference 2 described that, when a noise generated from the exclusive cooling fan 14 and a noise generated from the HDD 7 are compared with each other, a noise generated from the exclusive cooling fan 14 is negligibly as small as about 20 dB and it is too small to exert a bad influence upon the noise insulation structure while a noise from the HDD 7 is about 35 dB. However, a vibration and a noise generated from the exclusive cooling fan 14 cannot be completely neglected.
Further, since the exclusive cooling fan 14 is located near the cover 11 comprising the enclosure of the HDD 7, a pickup head within the HDD 7 is shocked by a vibration from the exclusive cooling fan 14 and the hard disk and the drive motor, etc. are shocked by a vibration from the exclusive cooling fan 14 so that the pickup head, the hard disk, etc. will be broken.
[Cited patent reference 1]: Official gazette of Japanese laid-open patent application No. 2002-74929
[Cited patent reference 2]: Official gazette of Japanese laid-open patent application No. 11-66832